What was the first available Kifaru pack?

[Rufus]

My favorite hunting pack is my original Siwash, absolutely love it, the only problem is the belt is pretty much worn out and not real comfortable with weight anymore. I also have an original Spike Camp that I like for shorter trips but I plan on being buried with that Siwash.

Hi Hunt4lyf. I don’t know much about the original Siwash. Do you have any photos of it, or could you describe what it’s like? Pretty cool that you still have it and use it. Do you happen to know what year it was made? Thanks, Rufus.

 

[MattB]

My first Kifaru was a Longhunter, and it was years after that before Patrick was willing to bring out bags in earth tones.

 

[CCH]

Longhunter was first. It was sort of a big deal when he came out with other packs. Pretty sure the Spike Camp was next. The Late Season and Siwash can about around the same time as did larger versions of the Longhunter, the Guide and Rendezvous. Going back to early on, Cabela’s had an exclusive Kifaru pack. It was called the Predator and was basically a frame with a duffle sort of bag, but made offshore and with its own pouches and accessories. That was my first Kifaru. Along the way the military line came along, 1000d and super heavy.

The original Kifaru forum was the only game in town for backpack hunting back in the day. There is a lot of good info from a lot of good guys on it. Sadly it seems to have disappeared. Would like to see it again if only to read some of a Bill Krenz’s great article style posts. We had a couple of cool movie nights at the shop. Paul Vertrees, now doing a lot of fishing guiding, brought a great one of using Golden Eagles to hunt wolves in Mongolia and I’m pretty sure we watched some classic Ben Pearson archery hunts. Dude could shoot.

My Kifaru packs included that Predator — Patrick never gave me a hard time for getting the imported version on close out, a Longhunter, a Spike Camp, a Late Season, a Rendezvous and an Express — oh, and a not at all missed a Koala.

I was at the first few Kifaru Rendezvous and enjoyed them and the people immensely. Like everything, they changed over time and became not really my sort of thing. Well, that’s my trip down memory lane. Probably more info than you wanted.

 

[Rufus]

Longhunter was first. It was sort of a big deal when he came out with other packs. Pretty sure the Spike Camp was next. The Late Season and Siwash can about around the same time as did larger versions of the Longhunter, the Guide and Rendezvous. Going back to early on, Cabela’s had an exclusive Kifaru pack. It was called the Predator and was basically a frame with a duffle sort of bag, but made offshore and with its own pouches and accessories. That was my first Kifaru. Along the way the military line came along, 1000d and super heavy.

The original Kifaru forum was the only game in town for backpack hunting back in the day. There is a lot of good info from a lot of good guys on it. Sadly it seems to have disappeared. Would like to see it again if only to read some of a Bill Krenz’s great article style posts. We had a couple of cool movie nights at the shop. Paul Vertrees, now doing a lot of fishing guiding, brought a great one of using Golden Eagles to hunt wolves in Mongolia and I’m pretty sure we watched some classic Ben Pearson archery hunts. Dude could shoot.

My Kifaru packs included that Predator — Patrick never gave me a hard time for getting the imported version on close out, a Longhunter, a Spike Camp, a Late Season, a Rendezvous and an Express — oh, and a not at all missed a Koala.

I was at the first few Kifaru Rendezvous and enjoyed them and the people immensely. Like everything, they changed over time and became not really my sort of thing. Well, that’s my trip down memory lane. Probably more info than you wanted.

Hey CCH. Thank you for your response. That is exactly the kind of information I’m looking for. I have read Patricks writings and really enjoy them. I think part of the reason Kifaru packs are as good as they are is because Patrick did so much designing in the field with a staple gun and needle and thread. The packs were designed at the most organic level. I never knew about the Cabelas predator pack. Do you happen to have any photos of it. Do you still use your Longhunter? I would love to find one of those someday. You talked about the Rendezvouss. I remember hearing about those and always wanted to get to one. Never was able to make it work. Any stories you want to share? Thanks again for the great info. -Rufus

 

[CCH]

At the time, the Predator was too high end for Cabela's and there was simply a very limited market. Their main hunting pack was an aluminum external frame. Actual backpack hunting was not a very main stream thing. I picked mine up for $109.99 and bought a few pouches for it as well. Sorry, but no pictures of it. That era was not quite so thoroughly documented with images as today. I did pack out a whole deer (skinned, gutted, and head off) strapped to it and it worked pretty well. It was cumbersome for backpacking as the duffle was really big and didn't cinch down particularly well, but as a frame for hauling it worked great. I don't have any Kifaru packs left. I started using HPG because I found their hipbelts and shoulder harness to be much more comfortable. I am sort of a minimalist in a lot of ways, and try not to house any gear I'm not using, so there aren't a lot of nostalgic pieces in my house.

As far as the Rendezvous goes, the first one was pretty special. Don Wedow showed up with watermelon leftover from his son's graduation party and a young rattlesnake in a jar. My then young son ate all the watermelon and everyone enjoyed passing the snake around. We hung out in a 12 man tipi, but Patrick had all sizes set up to see and stay in. However, that inspired increasingly huge tipis to house more people for visiting around the stove. I don't remember the largest one he built, maybe a 24 man? Definitely a specialty item. While we did a lot of shooting and other stuff, the best part was the time around the stove swapping -- or in my case listening to -- hunting stories. We did our share of gear talk as well. There were only a couple of manufacturers catering to backpack hunters and that gear was confined to packs and shelters. Figuring out what mainstream outdoor gear would work, and sharing those tips was a big part of the conversation. I had about six years worth of the Rendezvous caps that Patrick would give out to attendees and met a lot of awfully good people either at the Rendezvous or through the forum, many of whom have become life long friends. In that regard, I am in Patrick's and his Kifaru's debt.

 

[Hunt4lyf]

Hi Hunt4lyf. I don’t know much about the original Siwash. Do you have any photos of it, or could you describe what it’s like? Pretty cool that you still have it and use it. Do you happen to know what year it was made? Thanks, Rufus.

It’s a panel loader with bottom access, about 4,000 ci if I remember right, has the reversible fleece panels. I love mine, been using it since 2006 or so and have carried a lot of animals out in it. It’s good up to about 80 lbs comfortably but I’ve carried double that in it before, ended up ripping the stitching off the stays, Kifaru fixed it

If you watch eBay you can find them in the $200 range although the siwash seems pretty rare to show up.

 

[Rufus]

At the time, the Predator was too high end for Cabela's and there was simply a very limited market. Their main hunting pack was an aluminum external frame. Actual backpack hunting was not a very main stream thing. I picked mine up for $109.99 and bought a few pouches for it as well. Sorry, but no pictures of it. That era was not quite so thoroughly documented with images as today. I did pack out a whole deer (skinned, gutted, and head off) strapped to it and it worked pretty well. It was cumbersome for backpacking as the duffle was really big and didn't cinch down particularly well, but as a frame for hauling it worked great. I don't have any Kifaru packs left. I started using HPG because I found their hipbelts and shoulder harness to be much more comfortable. I am sort of a minimalist in a lot of ways, and try not to house any gear I'm not using, so there aren't a lot of nostalgic pieces in my house.

As far as the Rendezvous goes, the first one was pretty special. Don Wedow showed up with watermelon leftover from his son's graduation party and a young rattlesnake in a jar. My then young son ate all the watermelon and everyone enjoyed passing the snake around. We hung out in a 12 man tipi, but Patrick had all sizes set up to see and stay in. However, that inspired increasingly huge tipis to house more people for visiting around the stove. I don't remember the largest one he built, maybe a 24 man? Definitely a specialty item. While we did a lot of shooting and other stuff, the best part was the time around the stove swapping -- or in my case listening to -- hunting stories. We did our share of gear talk as well. There were only a couple of manufacturers catering to backpack hunters and that gear was confined to packs and shelters. Figuring out what mainstream outdoor gear would work, and sharing those tips was a big part of the conversation. I had about six years worth of the Rendezvous caps that Patrick would give out to attendees and met a lot of awfully good people either at the Rendezvous or through the forum, many of whom have become life long friends. In that regard, I am in Patrick's and his Kifaru's debt.

Thank you for the additional info. I did see a 24 man tent on a YouTube video once. Had 2 stoves in it to keep it warm.
Thanks again. -Rufus

 

[Rufus]

It’s a panel loader with bottom access, about 4,000 ci if I remember right, has the reversible fleece panels. I love mine, been using it since 2006 or so and have carried a lot of animals out in it. It’s good up to about 80 lbs comfortably but I’ve carried double that in it before, ended up ripping the stitching off the stays, Kifaru fixed it

If you watch eBay you can find them in the $200 range although the siwash seems pretty rare to show up.

View attachment 259068View attachment 259069View attachment 259070

Thanks for the photos and description. Pretty awesome that Kifaru packs have preformed so well for so long. Wonder how many animals have been carried out on a Kifaru pack. Thanks-Rufus

 

[hunterjmj]

I bought this pack in 02' and still use it to this day. My dad and I each bought one for a sheep hunt and put them work hauling sheep out. Since then I've hauled so many animals out with this pack. My Dad passed away years ago so I use his as a dedicated pack frame to haul meat out. I'm saving now to buy a minikeg as my hunting pack and I'll use the Longhunter frame to haul meat. These packs have served me well and Kifaru made these packs on short notice due to discovering them about a month before our hunt. I'll always be a Kifaru pack user.

 

[IN_Varmntr]

If you haven't already done so, I would recommend listening to the Kifarucast episodes with Aron talking with Patrick on his history developing gear.



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[Hunt4lyf]

@Rufus I thought you might like to see this, this is what Patrick included with the pack when you bought it.

No clue how many animals have been carried out with a Kifaru pack but I'm sure it's many thousands, I can tell you that I've got 20+ animals carried out with my Siwash over the years..

As was already mentioned, if you listen to podcasts then the Kifarucast episodes with Patrick on them are worth listening to, it gives you a lot of insight into the development of these packs.

 

[Ticklicker]

First step from the truck with a brand new Kifaru Long Hunter in 1999. Complete with blaze orange fleece panels and chest pouch/hand warmer. Wish I still had it. Sold it in a moment of stupidity!


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[rhunter424]

I found a few catalogs in the magazine bin!

 

[huntem]

Great post thanks to those who have contributed

 

[Anglo-American]

Xray came from the phonetic alphabet, same as the Zulu. Those were the coolest sounding out of the 26 available. Naming packs is the hardest part of the process.

Extinct animals from the last ice age could be a good source for names. That or plane names from WW2.

 

[Bender]

I'm a big fan of military vehicles Anglo. The Hellcat got its name from the M18 light tank that racked up more kills thank any other US tank in WWII primarily because it could out maneuver heavier and slower German tanks. The Sherman, Stryker, Shape Charge, Hooligan (breaching tool) and the Mag series all have military roots in name. Lots of good names to pull from with military hardware. I will have to get my paleontology brain going for the next ones, I believe a Canadian company already claimed a good one.

 

[robcollins]

Thanks for the photos and description. Pretty awesome that Kifaru packs have preformed so well for so long. Wonder how many animals have been carried out on a Kifaru pack. Thanks-Rufus

That Siwash isn't unique. The Navigator is the Military Division version, 1000D with PALS webbing. The AG1 is like the Navigator but made for a Duplex frame.

My daughter has a Siwash, my son has a Navigator, I have an AG1. 4,000 ci panel loaders seem to work well for us without being too big.

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[tony]

I need to look through my portable hard drive.
I think I have some PDFs of the old catalogs.
I get business and keeping what sells. But, Kifaru of old had some cool packs.
Wish I kept all the ones I bought and sold.

 

[goneoutside]

Kifaru catalog, from 2007:

Kifaru Magazines

Read the latest magazines about Kifaru and discover magazines on Yumpu.com

www.yumpu.com

 

[robcollins]

Archive.org (aka "the wayback machine") is my goto source. I can pull lots of versions of kifaru.net. Going clear back to '98, it's a little spotty, but the image below gives a bit of an idea. Colors? A bright yellow/black Longhunter?

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